Category: babies

Episode 2

The early morning sunshine warmed the old man’s bones, as he wandered along the old beachside road.  It wasn’t terribly far from his home, so even in his old age, he could still enjoy a morning walk along his favorite paths.  He’d been living in the same home, along the same stretch of road for all of his 83 years, and many parts of this beach had been his childhood playground. 

          As the old man walked along, he could recall the days of his youth, running along the sand dunes, building great castles with moats, and watching the turtles come and go, as they lay their many eggs.  Whenever they came, he would sit among the bushes for hours, watching their labor of love. 

          The old man had only watched the hatching process once, very early on in his life, and though he knew it was all part of life, he was so saddened by watching the birds gorge themselves on the innocent babies, that he’d never watched again.  Year after year, as he grew older, he would simply avoid the beach paths during that time.  Once hatching time had passed by, the old man would again, resume his beach walks.

          Some years back, as folks began visiting and watching the turtles, the beaches began to resemble a dirty playground.  Even after the local city officials began placing garbage cans throughout the area, the beaches were still littered with plastic drinking cups, food wrappers, and abandoned lawn chairs. 

          This disturbance to the area had bothered the old man so much, it stirred him to spend about a week each year, immediately after hatching had finished, picking up garbage from off the sand.  He knew it wasn’t much, but any help was better than no help at all!  The old man loved the beach a great deal, so even if his efforts were never seen or appreciated, he’d felt it important to keep doing it anyway… for the sake of the turtles.

          Over the past week, the old man had successfully cleared most of the beach along his stretch of road, and today he’d decided to pick up the remaining garbage from the tree line, nearest the roadway.  Discouragement filled his heart as he picked up trash that was sitting less than 10 feet from an empty garbage can.  It was as if no one wanted to even try!

          The old man wondered if his efforts made any difference, sadly taking in the scene before him, as he worked his way through the bushes along the tree line.  In all his years, he’d never once seen anything grow from the plastic laying about the beach, so it frustrated him to no end that others might carelessly drop it.  They had to know that it wasn’t going to magically disappear, or throw itself away.

          Oh well, he thought, at least most of it has been cleared away.  Aside from a few plastic containers, thankfully, there wasn’t much left to pick up this morning.  The old man was about to head home with the trash he’d collected, when he spied a small red plastic cup, tucked beneath a bush he’d walked past earlier. 

          Approaching the bush, the old man leaned down to retrieve the cup, exhaustion and discouragement filling his heart.  He wasn’t at all prepared, for the sight that greeted him, as he lifted the cup from off the sand.  There before him sat the tiniest of turtles, just staring up at him in awe and wonder…

What will the old man do?

Will our tiny turtle make it safely to the sea?

Tune in next week, to find out…

The first, and most important Monday Message, is that I love you more than I did last week, and less than I will this time next Monday!

I toyed with the idea of just playing music this morning, as my brain is on overdrive at the moment. Concentrating has been a bit of a challenge, of late! Friday, this last week, was the day we signed all our application and qualification paperwork, for an apartment that’s come available. Now we wait!

As crazy as it sounds, I’m filled with a mix of excitement and apprehension! What if they say No? What if they say Yes? Either way, you’re stuck with my crazy brain for a bit!

On a happy note, episode 2 of The Tale of the Turtle will be released tomorrow. I’ve been watching numerous shows regarding conservation of late, so this series is a new direction of writing that perhaps you’ll enjoy.

Hopefully, by the end of this week, I’ll have wrapped up my audio-recording edit of my book, and I’ll be able to print a copy for my Poor Man’s Copyright. To date, this has been all that God has called me to complete. After that, it’s in God’s capable hands!

Friday will be another story, featuring Boomer, one of our Barnyard babes… so don’t miss out!

Our Saturday, As They Say episodes, have been going pretty well, if I do say so myself! Thank you, to all of those who’ve offered up a phrase, so that I can guess it’s meaning and origin. So far, I’ve not had to come up with anything on my own.

Sundays continue to be for fellowship, and a time for sharing insights about what I’m reading in scriptures. You can stop in or not, as the Lobby is always open!

Let’s all have a wonderful week, shall we?!

Looks like today’s walk along the river will be in the rain, as it’s been raining all night long, and showing no signs of stopping!

No worries, since I love to walk in the rain! Also, I can sing along with my music out loud, as there’s no one else around to splash in the puddles with me, as I go along.

God Bless!

Quitting Cold Turkey!

Today, we find ourselves looking at another great phrase to guess at, thanks to the suggestion of HMiller2014. I shall give it my best effort!

Being that I smoked tobacco, off and on for 4o plus years, I’m well versed in the quitting process… trust me, I tried them all! Finally, just about 2 years ago, God walked me through quitting the habit, Cold Turkey! In truth, when you find yourself so broke and desperate that you’re willing to smoke plain tobacco, rolled in old grocery store receipts… it’s time!

Regarding our flapping figure of speech, let’s take a guess at it’s meaning and origin. I’m thinking, the idea of taking all the time and effort to prepare and serve a Turkey dinner, could easily be replaced by just eating the meat in plain cold slices, to save time. One could do the whole Bird Party, or simply eat Cold Turkey! From here, I suppose it became a popular saying to represent a quick something instead of the long drawn out version. Eat cold turkey, quit cold turkey, stop cold turkey, or whatever else one wants to add to the list. It’s a pretty versatile saying, if I do say so myself.

Let’s ask Googlianna what she thinks…

Wikipedia pretty much sticks to the idea of quitting a habit, but not much more helpful information was forthcoming, unless I wanted to read through two pages of odd examples. I just copied the basics from this site:

“Cold turkey” refers to the abrupt cessation of a substance dependence and the resulting unpleasant experience, as opposed to gradually easing the process through reduction over time or by using replacement medication.

I’m not satisfied with this answer, as it didn’t give us nearly enough info, so let’s find some more help:

Here’s a pretty darn complete explanation from a site called plansponsor.com. It reads as follows,

Often now the phrase is used in relation to quitting something addictive, such as hard drugs or cigarettes. According to Merriam Webster, the theory was described by the San Francisco Chronicle columnist Herb Caen in 1978: “It derives from the hideous combination of goose pimples and what William Burroughs calls ‘the cold burn’ that addicts suffer as they kick the habit.” In “Cop Speak: The Lingo of Law Enforcement and Crime,” Tom Philbin recites a second theory, that “the term may derive from the cold, clammy feel of the skin during withdrawal, like a turkey that has been refrigerated.”

However, the phrase was used in different ways earlier on. In a cartoon that appeared in newspapers on November 12, 1920, ace slangman Thomas “TAD” Dorgan used cold turkey this way: “Now tell me on the square—can I get by with this for the wedding—don’t string me—tell me cold turkey.” The editors of the Historical Dictionary of American Slang have found an earlier use: a 1910 usage where the speaker lost $5,000 cold turkey, in the sense of losing it outright.Merriam Webster speculates it may be that the original cold turkey was a combination of cold (“straightforward, matter-of-fact”) and the earlier talk turkey, which dates back to the early 1800s and refers to speaking plainly.

While I feel confident that I was on the right track, what I didn’t see coming, was the cold bumpy skin that birds have… hmmmm… who’d of thought of that?

By the way, I’m so eternally grateful to say that I’ve not touched cigarettes since I quit this last time, nor have I any desire to pick em back up again, ever! Thank You God!

Remember last Friday, when I promised the babes, here in the barn, to tell you something special about each of them, one by one? Well, I didn’t forget! I’ve spent the last week observing each of them, considering what it is that makes them each so special. With this adorable bunch, it wasn’t difficult at all!

When I arrived at the barn this morning, prepared to figure out who should go first, I discovered that the party had already started… without me! In my absence, Brutus had unlocked my office door, allowing all of the little ones to basically transform things into a mini movie theatre! They’d been waiting for me… ALL night! I could have saved myself loads of time and mental energy, had I known that they’d already decided the order in which things should be done.

Upon my desk, I could see a crudely drawn picture note, as their not so good at drawing letters yet. I could see what looked like the shape of Dinky, with what looked like Boomer beside her, and then little drawings of the rest of the babes, following behind them, one after the other. I gathered that I was to go from youngest to the oldest, if I were going by the picture… it did make sense, I suppose.

If you’re wondering how Brutus had a key to my office, I often leave the barn keys with him, to unlock the food barrels for breakfast in the mornings. The babes are always awake before I get here, usually hungry enough to destroy the barn. Brutus and Tilly help me, by feeding them breakfast and playing games until I arrive. Normally, he wouldn’t ever let them into my office, as this is where the barrel of Molasses covered oats are stored. The babes are so resourceful, I’ve had to install a lock on both the barrel… and my office door!

Not only did he let them in the door, but they were having a party in the oats barrel! I was met with smiling faces, mouths full of sweet oats, and sticky fingers, as I entered my office. The moment I walked through the doorway, I was mauled by a very excited group of little ones, all trying to talk at the same time.

They’d brewed me a fresh pot of coffee, and Tilly had actually gone down the lane to the farm where we’d gotten our oats, trading a fresh ear of corn to the cow living there, for a cup of fresh cream. I was quite touched at her efforts!

My computer had been turned on, and apparently, a group of sticky fingers had fluffed all my pillows. There, sitting quietly beside my keyboard, was little Dinky Do, all ready to go!

So, here I am writing to you, of all that I love about my little Dinky Do!

Obviously, as I’m writing about her first, we know that Dinky is the youngest one living here at the barn. I discovered her inside of an old boot, here in the Barnyard, when I first arrived. In honesty, I think she must have come with the barn. For whatever reason, Dinky never grows, never changing in anyway, aside from being able to hide in plain sight by changing colors to blend with the barn… I think she is somewhat of a chameleon, but that’s just a guess.

At first, Dinky was so frightened when I tried to approach, she blew little rings of angry smoke in my direction. I saw something of myself in her that morning, though, whether it was the fear or the anger, I’m not sure. Feeling lost and alone is an awful feeling, and I just wanted to scoop her up into my arms, to bring her some reassurance. I sat there in that barn with her for several hours, cooing and singing softly to her. I actually wrote the song down later on, but in keeping with my commitment to save it til it’s published, you’ll have to wait.

To make a long story a little shorter, Dinky and I became fast and forever friends that morning, and she’s been by my side ever since! Everyone here looks out for her, and Brutus has a very soft spot for her, I think, as she’s usually found atop his shoulders wherever he goes. What I love the most about Dinky are her eyes, forever innocent and full of wonder. Whenever anyone looks upon her, they simply want to hug her and snuggle, she’s that tender and affectionate.

Whenever I’m deep in the heart of my writing, it’s Dinky who can be found beside my laptop, resting her chin on my arm, snoring softly. One might say that she embodies my childlike innocence and imagination, often giving me ideas for the very adventures you like to read.

I’m grateful that this dragon stays small,

small enough to fit in a shoe,

I’d be lost if I’d never found you,

My Little Dinky Do…